Innovate Public Schools Publications

Innovate publishes school data and reports to inform parents, educators and decision-makers about how local schools are performing. We highlight schools that are excelling, as well as critical problems, and the most effective solutions for improving schools and making sure that every student in Silicon Valley has a world-class school.

Latest Publications

Bay Area Student Spotlights

See how Latino and African-American students are performing across select Bay Area school districts

May 2017

Review performance at San Francisco Unified and San Jose Unified school districts.

2015-16 Franklin-McKinley Compact Progress Reports

See how Franklin-McKinley schools are tracking towards their goals

May 2017

In 2013, the Franklin-McKinley School District, local charter schools, and several community partners kicked off a collaborative partnership to help boost student and school performance. The progress reports below help educators, community leaders and parents track progress towards their goals.

San Jose Unified Snapshot: Students with Disabilities

A snapshot of how SJSUD are serving students with disabilities

March 2017

Innovate Public Schools prepared this brief on Special Education in San Jose for our parent leader group in San Jose. This brief will be followed by a report looking at special education
across the entire Bay Area later this year.

Top Bay Area Public Schools for Underserved Students

Scores are up overall, but they aren’t rising fast enough for underserved students

November 2016

For the second year in a row, the Bay Area is doing worse than the rest of state
in educating low-income Latino and African American students. Here’s a look at the dozens of local schools proving it doesn’t have to be that way.

How World-class Schools Deliver for All Students

Six practices that drive high-performing schools to success

December 2015

World-class schools are vibrant and inspiring places that set a high bar for all students, and consistently support each and every one to reach his or her full potential. While no two schools are alike, this report outlines six school practices that drive their success that you can put to work right now in your own school community.

Top Bay Area Public Schools for Underserved Students

54 Bay Area public schools that achieved strong results for underserved students

November 2015

The new 2014-2015 state test results show a big gap in student achievement, specifically with low-income African American and Latino students performing far worse than other students. The problem is even more serious in the Bay Area, where local schools tend to trail the state average in test scores for these student groups. This report highlights 54 Bay Area public schools that achieved strong results for underserved students, showing what students can achieve and pointing the way toward how all schools can better support underserved students.

Struggling Schools, Promising Solutions

Silicon Valley’s Lowest-Performing Schools and Solutions for the Students That Attend Them

November 2014

More than 15,000 students in Silicon Valley are currently attending schools that have been persistently low-performing for years. “Struggling Schools, Promising Solutions” calls on local communities, especially superintendents and school boards, to take swift action to find lasting solutions for the students attending the 28 schools singled out in the report. It summarizes research from across the country on how to effectively turn around struggling schools and highlights examples of successful schools and turnaround efforts that can inform and inspire efforts in Silicon Valley.

Broken Promises

The Children Left Behind in Silicon Valley Schools

January 2014

Innovate Public Schools first research report, released in 2013 with an updated edition in 2014, is the first comprehensive look at the performance of public schools and districts in Santa Clara and San Mateo counties, with special attention on the achievement of underserved groups of students. The report found low percentages of college readiness for Latino, African-American, and Pacific Islander students, as well as low-income students and English learners, across the entire region.

Innovate Public Schools is a nonprofit organization focused on ensuring that all Bay Area students, including low-income students and students of color, receive an excellent education. We’re building a movement of families, educators, and business and elected leaders who together will make this vision a reality. We build the capacity of parents and educators to innovate and act together to create world-class public schools, and we publish easy-to-understand school quality data and research that highlights both problems and solutions.

This report draws on our team’s decades of experience in high-performing schools. Through our Start-up Schools Fellowship, which is grounded in the practices highlighted in this report, we support educators from school districts and charter schools to launch new schools and turn around low-performing schools. Innovate Public Schools publishes easy-to-understand school quality data and research to highlight both problems and solutions. We also provide training and support for parents in high-need communities so they can effectively advocate for better schools. Learn more about Innovate Public Schools.